Ampthill – St Andrew the Apostle

The parish church of St Andrew Ampthill is situated in Rectory Lane, a quiet cul-de-sac off Church Street the main road running east from Ampthill to Maulden. The church is in the north-east corner of the fine Georgian town of Ampthill.

Built from Bedfordshire Ironstone, the foundations of the church date from C12th, the surviving building dates primarily from the C14th and C15th. Structurally the church consists of a nave, north and south aisles, a chancel at the east and tower at the west end. The nave is 50 feet by 19 with the chancel being 32 feet by 18 at the east end. The two aisles are around 10 feet wide with the north being the slightly wider. The west end tower is around 13 feet by 14 feet and 68 feet high. There is a two storey porch on the south side.

The south wall of the church has an embattled top with three windows in a perpendicular style with rectilinear tracery. The four clerestory windows above are all square headed.

The two storey porch has decorative spandrels around the outer door frame. The door framework and other windows are relatively modern having been replaced in the 1850's. The room above may have been used for visiting clergy and has seen service as general office space.

The tower at the west is in three stages with an embattled parapet. Originally completed around 1506 the tower houses the peal of eight bells. There is a clock face on the south side with chimes on the quarter hour.
Space in the churchyard is limited and the tower encroaches on the western end of the nave. There is an octagonal stair turret on the north east corner of the tower roof.
The original west end door of the church under the tower has been filled in.

The north side has no embattlements at the top and has a door leading via a path across the churchyard to the modern vestry and church rooms. The graveyard is also situated to the north side of the church.

The large east end window has rectilinear tracery with two carved corbels of faces. Some of the stained glass in the east window is relatively modern dating from the late 1800's.

Inside the church the organ loft is to the north side of the chancel. The font is under a gallery at the base of the tower and pulpit to the north side of the aisle in front of the chancel.

Apart from the east window, the other main stained glass is also in the chancel. The three panel window was erected to the memory of a local parishioner Mrs T Wingfield and honours the patron saints of the parishes in which she lived.

There are small pieces of stained glass in various other windows, some as panels and others as single panes.